Lost and Found
by oOAnime AngelOo
Summary: When Jim is shot, Gene and the crew have to come to terms with what has happened...
1. Shots in the Junkyard

**::Lost and Found::**

By Anime Angel~^0^

"Aniki! Look out!"

Gene Starwind quickly reeled backwards, barely missing the bullet that had been flying toward him. Taking one precious second to reload his gun, the red head fired back toward the enemy.

"Watch it! You're gonna get yourself KILLED!" Jim's frantic voice screamed through the intercom.

The outlaw took a moment to glance up at where his partner was securely hidden. Shifting his blue eyes up toward a pile of miscellaneous car parts, Gene could clearly see the lock of blond hair sticking up from beneath a smashed car door. 

The two partners were currently tracking a bounty...or _had_ been. Now, however, they were face to face with the man. His name was Niega Corar, and he wasn't an easy target. They had been battling for almost an hour, and neither of the men were getting anywhere. The guy was fast; he was _unbelievably_ fast. This made it hard for the outlaw to aim...and keep out of the criminal's line of fire...

"Where is he Jim?! I can't see the damn bastard!"

"To your right...no left! Wait..."

"Which one dammit?!" Gene growled. He didn't have the time...

"I don't know! He's too fa-- he's behind you!"

Gene dove to the side instinctively, just as another spray of bullets littered the ground where he was standing. Rolling quickly to the side, the outlaw replaced the pistol he was currently holding with his castor. 

_This guy can't be human..._ he thought, loading a number 16 into the gun's chamber. _Is he a cyborg?_

"Jim, I need a reading on this guy! QUICK!"

"You got it Gene."

With a deep, determined breath, Gene rolled away from the piece of metal that had been concealing him and fired the castor. Unfortunately, Niega was dashing out of the line of fire even before his outlaw adversary had let go of the trigger. 

"Damn..."

"Aniki?!" The outlaw snapped to attention at the sound of his partner's small voice in his ear, quickly dashing to safety.

"What is it?!"

"Aniki I don't think he's just your average human..."

_That's an understatement... _"What is he then?! An animal?!"

"N...no....he's a human but..."

Another three or four bullets whizzed past Gene's hiding place. "WHAT IS HE DAMMIT?!"

"He's got cyborg enhancements!"

_Great..._

Gene swore under his breath, through clenched teeth, and reloaded his castor yet again. The battle wasn't going well, and for once in his life Gene was unsure of whether he was going to bring the bounty in _alive._..him being alive, that is. But he had to win...get rid of the guy, and quick. Not only did he have his own skin to think about, but his young partner's as well...

"GENE!"

The outlaw's eyes snapped up in attention, like the trained bounty hunter that he was. Niega was nearby...he could tell just by all of Jim's screaming through the microphone.

"Jim, kid, tone it down!" Gene tried to decipher what the kid was yelling about, straining his ears while at the same time paying attention to where Niega was on the premises. _Damn_, the outlaw swore mentally. The bounty had escaped his line of vision. "JIM WHERE IS HE?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

"Great...what am I supposed to--"

The comment was cut off as a large, crumpled car exploded into dust in front of him. The red head took off, zig zagging his way around car parts as best he could. Heavy footsteps followed behind him.

"I'm using a --"

"GENE! Don't tell me you're using the ones we just GOT!"

The outlaw ignored his partner's complaining, shutting off the intercom. A number 3 would do the trick...it _had_ too.

And it did.

The bullet exploded out of Gene's castor, and the outlaw could feel the power radiating from it. The magic hit its target square on, and in a few seconds their bounty was rendered immobile. Niega fell to the ground, lifeless and limp.

Gene wiped some of the sweat off of his brow, marveling at the dirt and grime his cape picked up. He re-holstered his castor, making his way over to the body, when the voice of a _very_ annoyed Jim reached his ears.

"Gene Starwind!"

The outlaw turned around quickly, knowing what was coming. His bright red hair, the color of his ship, was matted down on his forehead with sweat, and his eyes clearly showed exhaustion. He was not in the mood...

"What do you want Jim? Come on...let's take this guy in..."

"Aw Aniki, you used up the 3?"

"Yes Jim...I used the 3."

"Aw man! I paid--"

"Look...I don't damn well care what you paid! Let's GET THIS GUY IN," Gene said bluntly, picking his way around garbage.

"Aniki," the boy began, running a gloved hand through blond, thick hair. "You really need to pay more attention to our finances..." Jim looked up his partner with a disapproved frown. "You know, like not drinking so much...spending so much on your 'girlfriends'..."

"Look Jim, I'm not gonna stop just because you tell me too! You're NOT my boss!"

"But I AM YOUR PARTNER."

"My YOUNGER partner." 

The outlaw ignored the boy's angry look. Jim would get over it, he always did.

"I'm not a little kid Gene. I'm more mature than you!"

"Like HELL you are!"

"I AM! I'm mature enough to REALIZE that money doesn't grow on--"

"YEAH I'VE HEARD IT!" Gene snapped, whirling on the boy. His eyes flared. The red head was _definitely_ not in the mood for Jim's little arguments about money. He wanted to go home, get a drink, pick up a girl, and _relax_.

"Gene! You obviously DIDN'T GET IT THE FIRST TIME!"

"MAYBE THAT'S BECAUSE I DON'T CARE!"

"WELL YOU SHOULD! I WORK MY--"

"YEAH AND SO DO I! I am SO tired of you and your little outbursts!" Gene sneered, hands in the air. _I can't believe him! I just saved his ASS and he's COMPLAINING!_

"Ge-"

"I DON'T CARE! Half the time I'm around you..." The outlaw took a breath. "You're complaining and yelling! 'Gene don't do THIS' and 'Gene we can't AFFORD THAT!" he mocked..

"That's BECAUSE WE CAN'T!"

"Well maybe if you weren't here we could!"

Jim took a step back, as if he had just been slapped across the cheek. "You don't mean that..."

"And what if I do?!"

Jim furrowed his brow, letting his anger take over. "No you DON'T! Hell, I'm the one that keeps most of our money in CHECK!"

Gene shook his head, not caring anymore how angry the kid got. Things had been worse. "Think about this...MY money trouble started when YOU came along! Until then I was FINE ALL BY MYSELF!" Gene wasn't even thinking anymore. His mouth was moving seemingly by itself... "If I had left you there, I coulda had EVERYTHING! Girls, cars, A NICE STEADY JOB!"

Jim shook his head again.

"I coulda led a NICE, RELAXING LIFE! You think it's MY FAULT we're outta money!? HUH?!"

"Why didn't you LEAVE ME THEN? HUH?!" Jim screamed, his hand balling into angry fists. "If you're so SMART...why didn't you LEAVE ME?!"

"BECAUSE YOU WERE A PATHETIC PIECE OF SHIT! My girlfriend made me feel guilty!"

Jim was silent, his eyes starting to sting. His aniki didn't mean it...he couldn't...

"She nagged me, and nagged me, and I HAD to take you in! AND LOOK WHAT I GOT OUT OF IT! Nothing!" The outlaw stopped. It wasn't true but...but then again what his partner was saying wasn't true either...

_Uh oh..._ Gene thought. The blond was totally still, his eyes shiny and bright with tears. _Maybe I got a little carried away..._

"Maybe...I...I'll just leave then! H...huh?!" Jim backed up, running into a piece of metal. His cheeks were flushed with red, like they had been a few weeks before when he had had the flu.. "IF IT MAKES YOUR LIFE SO GOOD THEN I'LL LEAVE!"

"Ji--"

But the apology was cut short as a gunshot echoed through the dump. Both partners were silent as the sound died down.

"What the HELL was that?!" Gene yelled, pulling out his castor. The boy in front of him was silent. "Aw come on Jim...I didn't..."

Gene stopped, noticing his partner wasn't moving...

"Jim?"

"A...Aniki..." The boy gasped, eyes glassy and distant. Gene could only stand there as Jim collapsed, falling to the side, and to the ground. His body went limp when he hit, arms falling over his stomach. Gene continued to stand there in shock, taking in what was happening.

"Jim?!" Gene forgot about his castor, about the gunshot, about the overpriced bullets...and he ran straight to the fallen blond.

The outlaw didn't know what to do. He kneeled down next to the kid, eyes wide with worry. _Maybe this is just some joke...to make me feel guilty..._ But his partner was barely breathing, and so still...no one could fake that.

"Hang in their kid..." Gene gingerly turned the boy all the way onto his back, surveying Jim's body for anything that could tell him what was wrong. And that's when he saw it...the neat little bullet hole in Jim's chest, just beginning to bleed. 

_Damn...the gunshot!_

Knowing that whoever did this was still out there, the outlaw glanced upward, and around the surrounding mountains of metal. 

"There's nothing...wait." On a crumpled car, fifty or so feet away, a figure stood, gun in hand. Gene could tell it was a guy, perhaps another bounty hunter seeking revenge. Time seemed to slow as the red head awaited another shot, but instead of shooting the figure turned, and made his way down the mountain of metal, disappearing below.

"Dammit," Gene seethed. He wanted to go after the guy, to make him pay, but he needed to worry about his partner first. 

The kid was bleeding very badly now. Crimson liquid poured from the hole, making Gene a bit queasy. Careful not to hurt him, the outlaw pulled off his dirty cloak and wrapped it around his small partner, making sure that it was tight around the wound. He lifted Jim up and, hoping he wouldn't be too late, hurried to his car. As he set the boy inside, a small gasp of pain escaped the child's lips, and the outlaw subconsciously wondered if his partner would be alive to hear his apology.

"What the hell is taking so long?!"

Gene paced the hallway for about the hundredth time, impatiently awaiting the doctor...and his results on Jim. _He has to be okay..._ Gene told himself. _Any minute he'll wake up..._

But secretly the outlaw was wondering if he would. Nothing like this had happened before...

"Mr. Starwind?"

Gene snapped out of his trance, immediately ceasing his worried pace and confronting the doctor.

"Lemme guess...he's just fine? Right?"

The medical professional was silent, struggling with the words. "Mr. Starwind--"

"Can I see him?"

The doctor shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry," the man whispered. "But the boy didn't make it. He was too weak..."

Gene felt like he had been hit by a truck. He just stood there, staring at the man.

"You're...kidding..."

"Sir I'm sorry, there was nothing we could do. We tried--"

"What do you MEAN nothing?!" Gene suddenly yelled, grabbing the doctor by his collar. "YOU LET HIM DIE?!"

"Mr. Starwind PLEASE!"

"HUH?! HE WASN'T THAT BAD! DAMN YOU!" he screamed, tears beginning to cloud his vision. He couldn't believe it..._didn't_ believe it. The boy, the happy boy that he had raised and cared for, joked with and traveled with...his best friend was... was _dead_.

"Sir, I know this must be hard...but I am going to have to ask you to please let go..." 

Gene complied, letting go of the man who in turn dusted himself off. Without another word the doctor turned, leaving the outlaw alone in the hallway.

To be continued...hopefully. Maybe. I don't know...

Hola. Como estas? Yo estoy muy enferma. *sigh* Yo fui a la cine en San Jose, y yo vi una pelicula, Monsters Inc. La pelicula fue muy muy...bien! 

*ahem* Now that I have ended my Spanish rant about my night at the movies...I am sick, I got sick at the theatre. I AM NOT IN THE MOOD FOR FLAMES. There have been a lot of them running around lately, about all fics, so please: DON'T. BG COME BACK FROM YOUR TRIP! I want to talk to you...bored I am...WRITE MORE. *sigh* Please enjoy the fic! I wrote it when I got home...before my nose became stuffy! And I puked! And contracted a fever! YAY.

If my Spanish is wrong, that would be because I fell asleep in class during the lesson. Got a good nap out of it...

E-mail: anime_angel95052@yahoo.com

Fic edited by Meilora Starr. By request she asks that I put her page: Meilora Starr's AAA. She will edit fics for you!


	2. In Denial

**::Lost and Found::**

Anime Angel ~^0^

Aisha hopped out of the Taxi along with Suzuka and Melfina, hoping that whatever had been wrong was fixed by now. Gene had called earlier, yelling and swearing over the phone, and after urging them to come to the hospital he had hung up.

"I wonder what's wrong..." Melfina said quietly, pushing open the door of the hospital and stepping inside. Aisha and Suzuka followed, surprised by the placid, peaceful state the main room was in. There were patients lined up against the white, sickly looking walls, but all was quiet...well almost everything. A hunched over little old lady sat in one of the closer chairs, humming quietly to herself. Another elderly woman sat next to her, patting her on the back as if it were the last time they would see each other again. A small child, probably six or seven, was screaming and crying like a baboon, and a distressed mother was trying to calm him down. She smiled sheepishly at the trio that had just entered, as if to apologize for the noise.

"There's Gene," Melfina said, her breath catching as she noticed the blood on the front of his shirt. It was dark and she knew it was staining against the black, tight fabric. She hurried over, sitting in the chair next to him and placing a soft, pale hand on his.

The outlaw's eyes were open, but he didn't respond to the bio android when she asked him what had happened. They had a glazed look to them, and Gene looked like he had been drinking. His eyes were always like this when he got drunk...but for some reason they looked different to the bio android. More...distant, as if he were looking at something past her.

"Gene?" The dark haired girl looked into his eyes. Maybe Jim knew what was wrong...maybe he could tell her what had happened. She looked around, then to the Ctarl Ctarl and assassin standing behind her. They had the same bewildered look that she did...

For the first time since they had come in, she noticed that the yellow haired boy was no where to be found.

"Where's Jim?" Aisha said, as if to read Melfina's mind, and she began sniffing the air for any signs of the outlaw's small partner. However, the only scent she picked up was his blood...and it was coming from Gene. 

Immediately her lips curled back in a snarl, revealing her fangs. Claws extended, and her throat began to rumble with a low growling sound, like an angered beast. "What happened," she demanded, never taking her eyes away from the silent man covered in her little friend's blood. "Where's Jim."

Melfina looked first at the Ctarl Ctarl, then to the tensing assassin, and finally back to Gene. Her eyes clouded over, knowing something was terribly wrong.

"I didn't get him here in time..." Everyone's head snapped up at the sound of the outlaw's shaky voice, and Aisha practically screamed at him.

"What do you MEAN you didn't get him here in time?!" she yelled, voice high and scratchy, hinting to the trio that she was a bit frantic. Everyone in the room turned from their seats, eyes wide. A small, sickly looking little girl began to sob in the corner, cherry curls falling around her face like a frame. Her mother pulled her close, seemingly protecting her from the Ctarl Ctarl.

"I...he got shot and I couldn't do anything..." Gene whispered, never taking his eyes off of whatever he was focusing on.

Aisha began to growl, knowing what the outlaw meant. Something horrible had happened to Jim.. Her eyes narrowed, and her ears twitched with disbelief and anger. She glared at the outlaw, her catlike eyes, usually happy and bright, misting over. 

"Where is he," she hissed again, trying her best to keep her attitude in check. 

"I...the doctor said he didn't make it..."

Suzuka stared, Melfina gasped softly, and Aisha continued to growl, still in her fighting stance. She couldn't believe it...didn't believe it. Her mind couldn't comprehend what the outlaw had just said.

"Stop fooling around Gene Starwind...I want to see Jim!"

The outlaw slowly shook his head. Anger flared in his blue eyes, and they narrowed. "Aisha stop." 

"I don't BELIEVE YOU GENE STARWIND!" Unable to keep up her calm appearance, the Ctarl Ctarl backed slowly away from the group, the rumbling in her throat erupting into a scream. "I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! You BASTARD!"

Suzuka looked at her, fingers tightening instinctively around her bokken. The outlaw was too serious, too quiet to be joking around...and it was driving her cat friend crazy.

"What happened," the assassin asked, not really expecting and answer. "Who did this?!"

Aisha began to shake, her muscular shoulders rising and falling up and down. She watched as Gene's eyes came back into focus, and clouded with sadness and anger as he told Suzuka and Melfina everything that had happened. His voice broke, but the Ctarl Ctarl wasn't listening. The only thing she could hear was her own heart beating, thumping in her delicate ears, and then the soft voice of Melfina filled with disbelief.

"He...he's gone?"

Leaves picked up and swirled around the Ctarl Ctarl's strong, slim legs as she dashed through the park. She had been running the past hour or so, just running and destroying and venting her frustration. Jim wasn't gone. It wasn't true.

"Jim..." Aisha gasped, stopping near a park bench. The wind picked up, sending a cold chill down her back. She sunk to her knees on the muddy ground, eyes stinging. 

The Ctarl Ctarl cursed herself...why should she be crying for some weak little Terran child? Something so small, so fragile...how could she have let herself get attached to something like that? How could she have valued a life that could be extinguished so easily?! _Trusting anything but your strength can only bring disappointment__.._ she heard her father say, something he had said often when she was a child herself. And then... even when she was so little, she had still been ten times as strong as Jim...

And what would her father think of her now? Crying over something so unimportant...something a Ctarl Ctarl warrior should never even _think _of caring about...

"He's NOT DEAD!" she roared suddenly. "He's still sitting at his damn computer...!" She turned to the bench, imagined it was Gene, and tore it apart, savoring the sound of wood breaking and clattering to the mud covered ground. How could the outlaw lie like that? He almost made her cry! 

But Aisha would go back to the apartment...back to her room, and the familiar sights and smells.

And Jim. He would be there, she knew it. Sitting obliviously at his computer, typing away at finances and reports. He would reach up a small, gloved hand, and wave her larger ones away as she played with his hair. She could hear him complaining, then laughing...

"Stupid Gene," she growled. How could he have _said_ that...and to all of them! 

"He's not dead.." she said, repeating once or twice and convincing herself that the words were true. Her muscles relaxed, her claws withdrew, and she calmed down. "There isn't any need for mourning."

But in the back of her mind she knew it wasn't true. Gene had told the truth. Her little Terran, the object of all her affection, was dead.

Gene ran a scarred hand through Melfina's dark, silky hair, attempting to comfort her. She wasn't crying, or talking about it for that matter. In fact, the outlaw wasn't sure she even fully understood.

But then again, Gene wasn't sure it had completely sunk in for him, either. He sighed, shutting his eyes and trying to forget. Maybe it was a dream. He was just sleeping in again...stayed out to late with a girl. Jim would be in any minute to pull him out of bed, to splash cold water on him and complain about how lazy his aniki was.

And then he would pounce the boy, tickle him, pour water down his back. They would go into the kitchen, eat breakfast, look for jobs...then Gene could apologize. Just as soon as he woke up he would say he was sorry. Sorry for all of the lies he had blurted....

But the moment never came, and the outlaw knew it was all real. His partner, his best friend, was really _gone._

"Gene...what are we going to do now?" Melfina said quietly, her soft voice music to his ears. He was glad she was all right, at least someone was. Suzuka had disappeared after Aisha, and both of the hadn't been heard of for at least three hours. Gene silently wondered if they would return at all.

A knock echoed through the apartment, making the outlaw jump from his train of thought. Soon after, a very perky Ctarl Ctarl crashed in, yelling all the way.

"I'm home!" she screeched cheerfully. Melfina and Gene only stared. 

"Aisha? What the hell..."

"Is Jim home yet?" she asked excitedly. "Aisha wants to take him somewhere!"

Pushing Melfina gently to the side, Gene got up from the sofa. He made his way over to the cat girl, and looked into her eyes. They were large, happy, so full of excitement...

"Aisha, Jim's not coming home..." He hated saying it, he hated breaking her happy thoughts in two and leaving them on the floor.

But Aisha wasn't affected. She simply stood there, a goofy grin on her face. 

"Oh come on...where is--"

"Aisha dammit! STOP!"

"Gene, you stop!"

"Jim is dead and he's--" 

And that's when it hit him; Aisha's hand, claws extended, caught him across the face right below the eye. He fell to the floor, sliding toward Melfina and then stopping in a heap against her legs.

"SHUT UP GENE! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR YOUR LIES!" she screamed, her voice almost unrecognizable. " EVERYONE ELSE MIGHT BELIEVE YOU BUT I DON'T!"

The outlaw was silent, one hand bracing himself on the floor for another attack, and the other resting over his cheek, where three bloody gashes had appeared. The Ctarl Ctarl stood before him, chest heaving with anger. 

"This isn't funny," she hissed. "I want you to stop."

But before she could do anything more, Melfina was up off of the sofa. The bio android took a careful step toward her friend, and whispered her name. Aisha continued to glare past her, however, at the fallen outlaw. At that moment he was the center of her attention, the object of her hate.

"Aisha please, don't do this..."

"You don't understand Mel." Aisha pointed an accusing claw at Gene. "Have you heard him?!" 

"Aisha!" Melfina yelled, letting out a small sob in the process. "Gene isn't lying!"

Falling silent, and withdrawing her claws, Aisha let her body relax. She continued to glare past the bio android at the outlaw, but her anger died down. She simply stood there staring, eyes narrowed, ears twitching.

"I hate you Gene Starwind."

To be continued...dum dum DUM!

*Wow. Another chapter. *sigh* And another to write...just kidding. I like writing! And since I am still sick, I have the time! Again, thanks Meilora for editing! http://www.geocities.com/meilorastarr. Ahem, the next chapter, Suzuka returns, Gene is all angsty and depressed...Aisha is no longer in denial...and other stuff I can't tell you about! Yay!


	3. Found?

**::Lost and Found::**

Anime Angel ~^0^

Gene winced as Melfina ran the warm, damp washcloth over the three deep slashes just below his left eye. Aisha had struck him hard, cutting almost to the bone and leaving a painful, black and blue bruise ringing his eye. 

"Could ya maybe be a little gentler?" he asked hesitantly, giving her a 'please stop hurting me' type of look. Melfina simply continued to clean, niether becoming gentler or harsher in her task. Gene sighed to himself and settled down. Aisha had been gone for almost an hour, having run out of the apartment after attacking the outlaw. He vaguely wondered, as his cheek began to throb, if the Ctarl Ctarl would ever get over this...or for that matter ever believe that her Jimmy was truly dead. Hell, Gene had a hard time believing it himself.

"Dammit kid..." he murmured in a soft, gentle tone. The bio android next to him stopped what she was doing for a moment, and looked at the man. 

"Gene...do you think Aisha could have run off for good?" she said carefully, searching his dark face for anything she could find. The outlaw hadn't said much of anything since Aisha had hit him, besides the usual grunt of pain, and plead for her to be gentler.

The outlaw halted his former train of thought and looked deep into her soft, brown eyes. Anxiety was creeping into them, replacing the former, happy look they had once had. He pondered her question for a moment before turning to face her.

"I don't know Mel..." he whispered. "She...she really loved the kid..." Gene lowered his eyes to the sofa's cool leather below him, remembering what Melfina had said in the ship once, that Jim and Aisha could have been family. They really could have, now that Gene thought about it. The small scraps they got in, the almost sibling-type arguing, the giggling that erupted from the boy whenever she pinned him to the floor and tickled...

The outlaw let out a small murmur and felt hot tears clouding his vision. With a small grunt of frustration he pushed them back, forcing them to stay hidden and not run down his cheeks. He was about to get up and get a drink, when something pushed itself into his mind. A voice...and a face...

'Aniki stop!' 

The small voice seemed to echo. Soon it erupted into giggling, and then small, childish pleas. Gene could still see himself, seventeen and a half, tackling the boy to the floor and ruffling his hair up relentlesslly. Bright blue eyes, golden, matted hair...and then a small, shaky voice.

'Can....can I call you Aniki...Mr. Gene?'

Mr. Gene... it had been his name when the two had first met. He had said yes, of course, to the using of the term 'aniki'. Why not? Gene had merely thought of it as cute at the time, a nickname perhaps. But soon it had developed into his name, Gene being more of a nickname than 'aniki' was. Jim would only use Gene as a name for when he scolded the outlaw, kind of like a mother using a child's full name when annoyed.

And so, on Jim's ninth birthday, he had promised the boy he would be his aniki forever.._._ He had promised to care for him, protect him, always listen...and now that boy was dead. After only eleven years of living his life, most of them filled with worry and despair, that little boy was gone forever. Never to laugh, never to cry, never to call for his aniki again...

_A piece of shit...that's what I called him. A damn piece of shit! _The betrayed look that Jim had given him crept into his head, and soon everything was flooding his senses. The heavy breathing, the tone of voice the outlaw had put on. But most of all the insults and the lies came back. He had told Jim many times before that he hated the nagging, and that the boy was a bit too overreactive, but never had he told Jim he was worthless. He had never told Jim he didn't want him...

By now the outlaw had no will to stop the tears from sliding down his cheeks. He let them come, and they fell warm and salty onto his lips and chin.

"Gene?" Melfina whispered, placing a pale hand on top of his. Putting a slender arm around his shaking shoulder, the bio android pulled him closer to her.

"Gene it's okay..."

"Aw Mel," Gene whispered. "I'm such a bastard..."

But he didn't explain, didn't continue. What would she think of him if he told her all the things he had said? Melfina had loved Jim also...he couldn't tell her that Jim spent his last minutes alive getting yelled at...

"What do you mean?" When the outlaw didn't answer, Melfina shifted her gaze to her slender hands. _It's best not to push him..._ she thought. But inside, deep within her, there was a longing to know...not about what had happened, but about where her little friend had gone. She had visited the many temples on Sentinel, but each was different. 'Heaven', one said. 'Spirit World', said another. Cease existing? Turn into something else? She couldn't be sure, but she hoped that Jim was somewhere happy, maybe with a computer...

"I'm gonna go out for a while Mel," Gene said bluntly, rising from the sofa and leaving a large imprint in the soft leather. "I...I might go get a drink or something. I'll be back later, I don't know when..."

Melfina didn't say anything, knowing what that meant. Gene was going to go get drunk, pick up a girl, and forget about his partner. At least for the night...in the morning, she knew that it would all come back to him. Even worse perhaps.

But she didn't say anything, and she didn't watch as he pulled a jacket from the closet, and head for the local bar.

"What'll it be Starwind? The hard stuff? Looks like you could use it..."

Running a blue gloved finger around the smooth rim of an empty shot glass, Gene grunted. He had only been at the bar for a few minutes, but already he was beginning to get a headache. The buzzing of harsh, scratchy voices around him, and the sound of a singing off-key drunk pounded into his brain. He wanted a drink...but he also wanted quiet.

Tracing the cracks and scratches that marred the smooth, marble bar with his eyes, Gene took a moment to ponder. The hard stuff....

"Why not, Clyde. Why not."

The friendly bartender smile warmly, handing the outlaw the bottle and resting his elbows on the bar. He searched Gene's eyes for a moment, tapping a pudgy finger to the side of his nose.

"So what's got ya down tonight, kid? A girl?"

Vaguely, the outlaw shook his head.

"Money? Jobs?" Clyde laughed, twirling his coarse mustache. "Jim naggin ya again huh?"

Without warning Gene was up from his stool, knocking over it and a few glasses in the process. The bar fell silent, save the sound of shattering glass against the wood floor, and all eyes focused on the enraged outlaw. Leaning in on the bar, Gene brought his face as close as it could possible go to the bartender. 

"Don't say that," he growled, eyes dark. Clyde stepped back in surprise, hands up in a friendly gesture and eyes a bit wide.

"Hey! I didn't know it was that bad!" 

But when he looked for his friend, the outlaw was gone, leaving the bartender and his customers staring after him.

After jogging aimlessly down the sidewalk of busy Cramdon Ave., almost getting hit by a car, and running into an angry bystander, Gene decided to head back to the apartment. By the time he reached it, the sun was already starting to light up the dark sky, sending warms streaks of red across the tops of the distant hills and buildings. 

When he entered the apartment all was quiet. The faint sound of light snoring was coming from one of the bedrooms but other than that, everything was still. Light was beginning to stream in from the small windows that lined the side wall, and it cast an eerie glow on the grey coloring of the room. 

Stepping quietly and carefully in, Gene slipped off his denim jacket, hanging it in the closet. He then made his way into the living room, planning on resting his eyes, when something stopped him dead in his tracks.

There, sitting and smiling on the couch as if he had been there all night, was Jim.

To be continued...

*Wow...another chapter...AHEM. Is Jim really living? Will Aisha and Suzu ever return? I know I said that Suzu was to come back in this chapter...BUT OH WELL! Anyways, this took me long enought. The next chapter should/might be longer, and Aisha will probably be in it along with Suzu. Hope you like it!


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